The Presidents of the United States of America launch new album with sixth annual PUSAFEST | Concert preview

The Presidents of the United States of America celebrate the release of “Kudos for You” with three PUSAFEST ’14 shows (Karen Moskowitz)

Not many Seattle bands can pretend that a national holiday was named in their honor.

The Presidents of the United States of America, known to fans by the acronym PUSA, are warming up for Presidents Day with their sixth annual PUSAFEST, a series of weekend shows beginning Friday night at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland and continuing Saturday at Showbox at the Market and Sunday at the Triple Door. (The two shows at the Triple Door are the band’s first full-length all-acoustic performances.)

PUSAFEST ’14, landing on a holiday weekend that begins with Valentine’s Day and ends with Presidents Day, coincides with the release of the band’s first studio album in six years, available for as low as $10 through the band’s PledgeMusic page here. (The package deal includes the new album as well as a bonus live album, “Thanks for the Feedback: PUSAFEST ’11.”) Copies of the new album will also be available at the shows on CD and vinyl.

“We thought we were done making new records, and we accidentally did it again,” said drummer Jason Finn, who joined Chris Ballew and Dave Dederer for the band’s first show more than 20 years ago (Andrew McKeag has since replaced Dederer).

Last October, the gleesome threesome known for such party-punk songs as “Naked and Famous,” “Lump,” “Peaches,” “Kitty” and “Dune Buggy” decided to book some studio time at Seattle’s Jupiter Studios with longtime producer Martin Feveyear.

“We booked a couple of days with Martin just for fun because it had been a while since we’d been there,” Finn said of the sessions with Ballew (the band’s primary songwriter) and McKeag.

“We didn’t have any material to work out. So we got there and stared at each other and stared at Chris’ notebook and started making noise. And we surpassed all of our modest expectations.”

Indeed, “Kudos for You” — the band’s seventh studio album — is classic Presidents of the United States of America, which was signed to Columbia Records during the band’s heyday in the ’90s. The album is infused with clever, comical lyrics; infectious hooks, sing-along choruses and quirky, high-spirited instrumentation. (Ballew plays two-string “basitar” and McKeag, three-string “guitbass.”)

Ballew, who also performs as children’s musician Caspar Babypants, has always had a penchant for writing humorous songs about fruit, pets, insects and other delightfully kooky subjects. “Slow Slow Fly” is about a pesky fly that somehow survives until winter:

“In the summer he’s licking all the fruit / Looking for the garbage at the backyard barbecue . . . He’ll get much slower when the pond begins to freeze / so stop and feel the breeze wheeze through the trees.”

The new song “Flea Vs. Mite,” a fight song for bugs, is based on the band’s hard-rocking Seahawks anthem, “This Is a Blitz.”

“We kept the music and just rewrote the lyrics,” Finn said.

“Crown Victoria,” about the barge-like Ford sedan used as cabs and police cruisers, features John Roderick of The Long Winters.

The two-time Grammy-nominated trio, which describes itself as a band of “full-time part-timers” these days, is keeping a low profile with the new, independent release, which could be compared to a baby that arrives unexpectedly in middle age.

“We’re not going to do a big publicity campaign or promo thing,” Finn said. “This is just for our fans and our friends . . . We’re not looking to make the top of the pops.”

Incredibly, the group has never performed a full-length acoustic show in public.

“We’re very excited. It’s something we’re really good at and should do more often,” Finn said.

About us

Seattle Times music coordinator Paul de Barros has written about jazz and pop music for the paper since 1982 and is the author of “Jackson Street After Hours: The Roots of Jazz in Seattle.” On Twitter @pdebarros.

Andrew Matson is a freelance writer and close follower of the Seattle pop music scene – especially the genres of rap, rock and electronic. On Twitter @andrewmatson.

Seattle native Gene Stout has been writing about popular music for more than two decades and has interviewed and profiled many of Seattle’s best-known musicians. On Twitter @popmusiccritic.

Charles R. Cross is a Seattle-based writer who has authored eight books, including the bestselling biography of Kurt Cobain, "Heavier Than Heaven." On Twitter @Charlesrcross.

Charlie Zaillian served as music director of Olympia’s influential KAOS-FM, has a particular affection for punk rock and has freelanced for The Seattle Times since 2011. On Twitter @czaillian

Owen R. Smith is a freelance journalist and music writer, country music aficionado, erstwhile sportswriter and one-time novelist. On Twitter @inanedetails.

Gillian G. Gaar has written extensively about music and popular culture and is the author of several books. On Twitter @GillianGaar.

Mike Ramos is a Seattle native and freelance writer who has followed rap music since the early '90s and can sometimes be heard DJing on KEXP FM. On Twitter: @RAM0S206.

Andrew Gospe is a freelance writer and electronic musician who's called Seattle home since 2009. On Twitter: @gospea.